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User blog:Killermoves/A Challenge To Single Combat: Nai Khanomtom vs Daniel Mendoza
Throughout all historical battles in this wiki, we have focused too much on weapons such as swords, armor or firearms. But let's take a break from these warriors and take a look at those who didn't need to use a single blade or a gun magazine to take down their adversaries. These guys we are pitting today are some of the most influential martial artists and combat experts to ever grace history, and they can beat the crap out of you without the need of weapons. For their whole bodies ARE the weapons. Nai Khanomtom: The great Siamese warrior who became legendary for his grueling 10-men ladder match. vs Daniel Mendoza: The brutal British boxer who used his speed and intelligence to defeat larger men. In a one-on-one fight between these two great duellists from the 18th century... WHO IS DEADLIEST?! Nai Khanomtom Nai Khanomtom (circa 1700s) was a legendary Thai soldier and boxer during the era of the Ayutthaya Kingdom. Not much is known about Khanomtom's early life, but he became a folkhero in modern Thailand for basically popularizing the sport that would later became known as Thai boxing ("The Father of Muay Thai"). Khanomtom's story started during the Second Burmese War (1765-1767). At that time, the Ayutthaya Kingdom was losing its long-running conflict with the neighboring Burmese Kingdom. In 1767, the capital of the Siamese Kingdom fell, and Khanomtom was one of the warriors who were captured and sent as a captive to the King of Burma. After seven years of captivity, the Burmese King organized a festival and he wanted to see how his Burmese boxers would fare against the Thai boxers. Nai Khanomtom was chosen to represent the Thais against the Burmese. As is custom, Khanomtom opened the fight with a traditional Wai khru dance. He then brutally knocked out the first Burmese fighter. The Burmese thought the Wai khru was some sort of black magic which had aided him, and the king ordered that he face more Burmese boxers. Man after man fell, before the Burmese champion finally faced Khanomtom whom the latter also knocked out. After seeing this, no Burmese fighter dared to step into the ring with him. The Burmese King was so impressed with Nai Khanomtom that he granted Khanomtom his freedom as well as a prize of several wives. Khanomtom would later return to Siam and open his own martial arts school, later giving birth to modern Thai boxing. Martial Art= Probably the ancestor to one of the most popular martial arts in the entire planet, Muay Boran is the traditional combat sport in Siam, and Nai Khanomtom was one of the pioneers of this art. Contrary to popular belief though, Nai did not invent the martial art, but his skills and legendary bouts popularized it from all other Siamese combat styles. Like its successor Muay Thai, Muay Boran is a very complex martial art that uses almost all parts of the body as a striking weapon like fists and legs, as well as elbows and knees (and even the head). It also has a deadly arsenal of clinch fighting techniques like in Muay Thai. However, unlike the modern sport which only focused on stand-up fighting, Muay Boran also included ground fighting. It is a martial art that was used by Siamese warriors in battle. While historians have had difficulties in pinpointing what style Khanomtom used, since there were a lot of several old styles that were developed in various regions of Thailand that are now lumped into the term Muay Boran (literally "Ancient Boxing"), such as Muay Chaiya, Muay Thasao, Muay Lopburi, and Muay Korat, there was no doubt that what people would call "Thai Boxing" was popularized by Nai Khanomtom. |-|Punching= * As a predominantly kicking sport, Muay Boran didn't have that much to offer when it comes to punching like in muay thai. Most of the punches seen in traditional muay consist of heavy chopping strikes and wide haymakers. Straights were also used but there were really underpowered and didn't have any distinction between a jab or a cross like in boxing. Muay boran did have a double punch technique called the "Hanuman" where a "Nak" (aka Thai boxer) would strike the opponent's chin with both fists at the same time. It wouldn't be until the arrival of British and American boxers a century later where Siamese fighters would adopt boxing techniques like jabs etc. * Elbows on the other hand, was a different story. Muay boran had a wide range of elbow techniques, and while these types of strikes are shorter in range than fists, they make up for how much devastation it can cause. The fact that elbows are more solid and safer to do than fists allows it to generate much more power. There are two main types of elbows done by the naks: ** Elbow strike: the traditional elbow strike where an elbow is delivered horizontally. ** Overhand elbow: a much more dangerous elbow strike in which naks would send an elbow downwards towards an opponent's skull. |-|Kicking= * What it lacks in fists, Muay boran makes up for its kicks. Khanomtom himself was a noted kicker during his time. Naks did their leg days by literally kicking a banana tree a hundred times per day to deaden nerves. There are a ton of kicking techniques in muay boran and muay thai, but the most of them are categorized into four: ** Teeps are the traditional front kicks or push kicks which, while not that powerful, can be done to stop a charging attacker. Side-teeps were basically sidekicks but minus the jump, and are more used for pushing rather than doing damage. While on its own a simple teep isn't that dangerous, it can be lethal if used with enough force on an opponent's groin, or perform joint destruction by teeping at an enemy's kneecap. ** While teeps are useful, the main fight-enders were the Roundhouse Kicks. These are circular kicks that, while slower, can generate more power akin to that of swinging a baseball bat. Unlike in other kickboxing art like taekwondo or karate, muay thai and muay boran kicks not with the use of the upper surface of the foot, but with the harder and more solid shins. Different roundhouse kicks are used for different reasons. Head kicks are risky but are used to knock an opponent out, medium kicks are sneakier kicks used to break ribs, and leg kicks are used to basically chop through an opponent's leg and decrease his movement. ** Stomps, as what the name tells, is a kick that is done by literally stepping at a downed opponent. This is meant as a finishing blow done to an opponent's abdomen or head. It is more common in old-school muay boran than in muay thai. ** And finally, the most dangerous are the traditional Knee Kicks in Thailand. These kicks are performed similarly to how a Siamese warrior would stab an opponent with a spear or a knife. These kicks are the shortest in range and can only target limited areas in the body. But once they land, they are really deadly. Nat Geo once tested a knee from a nak and results showed that getting kneed in the abdomen was similar to getting hit by a car at 35 mph. * Although less spectacular as other kicking martial arts, muay does have its fair share of Flying Kicks. Naks can send their opponents on the ground with the use of flying roundhouses and the most famous of all, the flying knees. The latter is so dangerous, that it has a high risk of breaking an opponent's skull with a strike. |-|Grappling= * Muay boran has a more limited arsenal when it comes to grappling with a dominant emphasis on clinching and limited throwing. But their clinch fighting is unique and iconic to all other martial arts. The most common grappling technique in the Nak's arsenal is the Thai clinch also known as the Double-Hand Plum. Using the clinch allows the nak to grab the opponent at the back of the head, hold him tight and immobolize him, before basically beating the crap out of him by elbows, headbutts and knee kicks over and over again. ** The plum can also be used to pull and bring an opponent down to the ground. On the ground, a nak can perform ground fighting techniques were they get on top of an opponent and rain down more elbows to the face. ** Besides the Thai plum, the Khao Kong is also used in the clinch. This is a variant of a knee strike in which the Nak literally hugs his enemies, hold on tight, and rain curved knees to his sides and ribs. |-|Guard= * The traditional Muay Guard is an upright and stable defensive posture. The palms are always facing the opponent to catch incoming strikes, while the long arm is used to prevent clinching. Palms are used to catch straight punches and the naks also used their shoulders and elbows to catch high kicks. The purpose of this stance is to create this tough statue-like posture that can stay steady and strong from almost all forms of attacks. * To protect from kicks, especially leg kicks and medium-level kicks, naks would use what they called as "checking", in which they use their own shins to block a powerful roundhouse kick. * While good for defending from striking and clinching, the major weakness of this stance is the fact that they can't do much against more complex throws and takedowns. The guard's stiffness can't do much against many wrestling holds and throws. * Nai Khanomtom himself favored a style in muay boran that focused on brute strength. While many other Asian martial arts like Korean and Japanese TMA focused on speed, Muay was developed to focus solely on power. For naks, one killing blow was superior to being able to perform combos. In a fight, Nai's objective is to deliver the most powerful killing blows as he can while resisting the other fighter's attacks. |-|Equipment= The most iconic tool in the Thai boxer's career is the Hemp Wraps. These are tight and thick ropes or bandages that are tied to their fists. Th wraps create a more solid fists that allows them to punch harder and protect their hands better. It also prevents slipping due to sweat when the nak is grappling his opponent. Daniel Mendoza Daniel Mendoza (July 5, 1764 – September 3, 1836) also known as Dan Mendoza, "Mendoza the Jew" or "Mendoza the Great", was an Jewish-English prizefighter who became the heavyweight champion of England from 1792–1795. He fought a total of 37 bouts and won 30 of them through knockouts. Considered to be the most influential boxer in history, Daniel Mendoza is credited with completely reinventing the sport of boxing by emphasizing on speed rather than power. He is known to be the creator of the "outboxer" style of boxing that many modern boxers still used today like Muhammad Ali and Floyd Mayweather Jr. He is known by many to be the "Father of Modern Boxing". Mendoza started his career in pugilism at the young age of 16. He turned professional at the age of 18, and had an unbeatable 17 winning streak by 1783. He would later be embroiled in a heated rivalry with fellow boxer Richard Humphries, which resulted in the first "modern trash-talk" rivalry in sports history. It gained so much publicity that their bout was also the first where people paid to watch a sports game. At his prime he was capable of fighting three separate brawls in just one day, winning them all. He was so good in fact, that he was one of the first athlete to actually meet the Prince of Wales who would become King George IV. Outside of boxing, Mendoza still continued living a fighting life. He once fought off a gang with nothing more than a pistol and a mahogany table, convicted of numerous crimes, and was once hired as a thug to put down the ongoing Old Price Riots (which was one of the deadliest riots in London's history). His time as a boxer and other violent escapades solidified Mendoza as one of the toughest guys in his time. He is also considered a national hero in the Jewish community, because he elevated the status of Jews from a helpless minority to a physically strong people in a time where there was rampant antisemitism. Sweet Science= Daniel Mendoza was one of the greatest boxers of his time but he was no modern boxer. Mendoza trained in the art of British Bare-Knuckle Boxing, also known as Classical Pugilism, which is the predecessor to modern Western gloved boxing. Unlike in modern boxing that focused only on punching and limited clinching, Classical Pugilism was an almost complete combat style that consisted of punching as well as kicking and grappling. While many "punching" sports were already developed even before BKB (like those in Ancient Greece and Medieval Russia), it was the English (and the Irish) who developed a style with a thorough set of punching techniques rather than just throwing wild punches and slugging it out. It was the British who eventually coined the term "Boxing". Mendoza however, was special from all the other boxers in Classical Pugilism, since he favored speed, evasion and counter-punching rather than brute strength. He basically invented what would later be known as the "outboxer" style of boxing that legends such as Muhammad Ali and Floyd Mayweather Jr. used. |-|Punching= * Unlike all other combat sports, boxing is famed for its use of fists. The traditional boxing stance (in which the lead arm is forward and the dominant hand is cocked at the back) allows the boxer to have two main types of straight punches: the jab and the cross. ** The jab is the fastest punch with the longest range. While weaker than all the other punches, the jab's speed allows the boxer to send rapid fire punches that deliver death at a thousand cuts (or punches). The jabs are also used to keep an opponent at bay, and can also be used to send in fast lounges similar to a thrust by a fencer. ** The cross on the other hand is a slower, but significantly more powerful, straight punch. It is done by loading the rear hand at the back, before sending the fist to the opponent, gaining more momentum and power before hitting its target. Many knockout blows in boxing were caused by the cross punch, and a test once revealed that it is even more powerful than a karate punch (which are powerful enough to break ice and adobe). * Hooks are round punches that are delivered not in a straight line, but in a wide arc to the side of the face or ribs of an opponent. They are much slower and shorter in range but more devastating and more difficult to dodge. Hooks can also be loaded to perform a more powerful haymaker. * During Mendoza's time, the Uppercut (known at that time as undercuts) was already invented. It is the most powerful punch in boxing with its ability to get pass a guard and potentially break ribs and internal organs. * Choppers (known in modern terms as backhands or long uppercuts) were also favored. Doing a chopper consists of a boxer deliberately smashing the back of their fists straight to the opponent's face, with the intent of sending their knuckles to cause bruise and cuts. It can even cause blindness if the knuckle hits an eye. * Although still debated by historians of their prominence, elbows and "parrying punches" (palm strikes and slaps) were generally allowed in classical pugilism. A palm strike in particular is one dangerous strike since it can both generate the same power as a fist but with lesser physical risks and injuries. * A pugilist can punch to any parts of the body but were not allowed to hit an opponent while they are down. So classical pugilism didn't have any ground fighting or "ground and pound" like in today's MMA. |-|Kicking= * Believe it or not, boxing did had kicks back in the day. Although British boxing was not as keen with kicking as say French boxing (savate), kicks were still allowed during Mendoza's time. Kicking in classical pugilism consisted only of two forms: push kicks and purring kicks. ** Push Kicks are these strong front kicks that are targeted towards an opponent's abdomen or legs (and in the case of Bendigo Thompson, they can even perform "chin kicks"). They are great in pushing an aggressive opponent at bay or delivering steady powerful shots at the torso. ** The second type of kicking were the Purring Kicks (or "purring"). These are kicks that are done by smashing an opponent's shin with the hardened rim of the boot. This is the most dangerous kick in the pugilist's arsenal, and in some books, its even recorded to be able to shatter shins and even kill a man when targeted at the groin (Monstery, 1870). |-|Grappling= * Grappling was allowed in classical pugilism and boxers at that time were capable of doing high-level wrestling, with the aim of slamming an opponent as hard as they can to the ground and causing as much damage. Wrestling wasn't only done for offense, but also for defense since it can nullify all forms of strikes. The only problem was that in Mendoza's time any grabs and throws below the waist were not allowed. So pugilist at that time are prohibited from doing leg takedowns like in other wrestling or judo styles. Still, they have an arsenal of wrestling moves that consist of throws, holds and suplexes: ** The Cross-Buttock Throw was the most favored throw since it can be easily done by just one swift grab, and can be used to counter an opponent's hold or clinch. ** Clinching was also more thorough back then, and the boxer can use hugs and headlocks (known as "Chancery") to grab a hold of an opponent and immobilize him. The holds also allowed a pugilist to continuously rain down punches to the face (which was called "Fibbing"), kicks in the shins, or headbutts. ** Holds can also be modified in fight by turning them into submissions and chokes, which can squeeze the life out of the opponent. * Hair-pulling was also very legal and a boxer can grab an opponent's hair, keeping him in place, and subsequently rain down punches on him. |-|Guard= * The traditional Bare-Knuckle Boxing Stance (known to us as the "Irish Fighting Stance") was the predominant stance in classical pugilism. It has a long arm that is used to keep an opponent at bay and prevent any attempts at grappling, while the rear hand is cocked at the back to be used as a counter. Forearms, palms, and the back of the hands were used to block and parry. Unlike the modern boxing stance, this form was developed to defend from not only punches but also grappling. * Mendoza modified his own bare-knuckle stance by putting the fists in front of his face in order to better protect the head. His stance was also more squared and crouch so he can sidestep and dodge much faster to avoid strikes and attempts at clinching. This style of boxing favored evasion, and the reason why Mendoza created this style was because during his time boxing didn't have weight classes, and he had to fight against larger and tougher opponents (he was middleweight at best) who would've destroyed him if wrestle or to trade punches with them. He popularized the use of sidesteps, backsteps and weaving to dodge opponent strikes while also simultaneously countering them as well. |-|Equipment= While boxing is generally an unarmed sport, they are allowed to wear footwear in single combat. Pugilists at that time would wear Steel-Toed Boots to increase the lethality of their kicks, specifically the purring kicks to the point that they can break shins. X-Factors Training= While both fighters are well-versed in their martial art, only one of these two ups the other by basically having a military background. Daniel Mendoza is a talented fighter no doubt, but Nai Khanomtom is bringing not only muay boran training, but also actual military training during his time in the Siamese Army. Besides muay boran, Nai would have also been knowledgeable in krabi-krabong, an armed martial art consisting of dual-wielding swords and spears taught in the Siamese Army. While this fight would be undoubtedly an unarmed fight, the fact that Nai had army training probably gives him some physical and mental advantage. |-|Experience= This is a bit harder to decide upon than training. While the previous x-factor edges were more clean-cut, comparing both warrior's experiences is more tricky since one has an actual military career while the other has a more intensive duelling career. We don't really know much about Nai Khanomtom but we do know that as a soldier he probably fought in battles and skirmishes in the Second Burmese War. The only conflict that Daniel Mendoza participated in was the Old Price Riot, which was deadly in itself but not as large as an actual nationwide war. Mendoza however, has a more extensive experience when it comes to one-on-one fights, since he fought in 37 fights, winning 34 of them with 30 of those being knockouts, while Khanomtom's legend only listed 10 fights. |-|Tactics= Okay, we don't really know that much about Nai's strategy since his legend only succeeds in telling that he defeated 10 men with none of the details of what really happened. Daniel Mendoza's fighting career is better recorded with complete details surrounding his strategy and approach to battle. Mendoza's intellect was highlighted in most of these records, since people just loved hearing and reading about the story of a small Jewish man taking on all fighters not with power but with speed and wit. It's not to say that Nai was a dumb fighter, it's just that he is known more for his toughness during his 10-man bout rather than defeating people with intellect. Notes * The fight will be a one-on-one fight in a large enclosed arena with people watching as spectators. Category:Blog posts